North Korea
North Korea said it is willing to cooperate with the U.N. and other international organizations on human rights, but is bristling at what it views as politicization of the issue by its arch enemy, the United States. In February, a U.N. commission of inquiry concluded that there was evidence of crimes against humanity by North Korea's authoritarian government. Washington this week called on Pyongyang to shut its “evil system” of prison camps. Foreign Minister Ri Su Yong did not directly address the findings of the commission, which Pyongyang has refused to cooperate with. Ri accused the U.S. of “abusing” the human rights issue for political purposes. He said North Korea is willing to cooperate on the issue with countries that aren't hostile to it.
Russia
The Russian foreign minister issued a blistering attack on the West and NATO, accusing them of being unable to change their Cold War “genetic code” and saying the United States must abandon its claims to “eternal uniqueness.” Sergey Lavrov said the crisis in Ukraine was the result of a coup d'etat in that country supported by the United States and the European Union. He made no mention of Western allegations that Russia has sent troops and heavy weapons into eastern Ukraine in support of pro-Russian rebels who have taken over a number of cities. Lavrov also says the Russian annexation of Crimea earlier this year was, in fact, the choice of the largely Russian-speaking population there.
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